Synesthesia In Novels

“You’re never alone when you’re reading a book,” was once said by Susan Wiggs.(Goodreads) It’s amazing how you can be able to feel like you are actually inside the novel you’re reading. While reading the book “Ultraviolet” by R.J. Anderson, it felt as if time had briefly paused and I was a character inside of this novel. This book instantly pulled me in. I felt as if I could be in the main character’s position. Alison Jefferies, the protagonist of novel and I are alike in many ways. We both share the same view of the world, are viewed by the world in similar ways and I would respond in a comparable way to the central conflict of the novel. Therefore, I believe given the chance, we could be friends.

Alison has had a tough hand dealt to her

Throughout the novel, Alison learns why she can view the world differently than others do. She finds out that she has a rare condition called synesthesia. Synesthesia is a condition in which one type of stimulation evokes the sensation of another, as when the hearing of a sound produces the visualization of a color. (Dictionary.com) Most synesthetes have only one form of synesthesia while Alison has them all. She also has a condition called tetrachromacy. Tetrachromacy allows you to identify four primary colors instead of three. It allows you to see into the ultraviolet spectrum. Alison knew that she was different and that there was a uniqueness to her but her mother didn’t want anyone to know about it. I believe that Alison can physically say out loud that she is a suspect and take full responsibility for things she has done. However, I did not think that she believed those things in her heart and mind. She sometimes spokes as if she is the victim, like everyone has done her wrong. For example, with her situation with her classmate, Tori, she just always assumed Tori was after her. Alison always accused Tori for doing things to her because she had made herself believe that Tori hated her. She later figured out that this wasn’t the case. Dr. Faraday, one of Alison’s psychiatrists, gave Alison some new insight. “Everybody has a story, Alison,”(267). He explained to her all of the behind the scenes actions she didn’t understand and made misconceptions about. This allowed her to view the world a little differently and to let her understand that there are justifications for actions that are